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Simple Game-Ready Asset Creation In 3D Coat


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Hello, again, folks!  I've managed to finally get another training course established on Udemy.  This time, it's called "Simple Game-Ready Asset Creation In 3D Coat."  OK, so the title isn't so simple, but the aim is to focus on the process of making a game-ready asset in 3D Coat and getting it into a game engine.  Below are the highlights:
 
- 15 videos, covering over 2 hrs of instruction (not too long, not too short, honing in on most important concepts)
- Simple asset creation (because most tutorials that aim to help you get your assets into a game engine spend too much time on the asset and not the process)
- Organized process from concept to game engine (UDK and Unity)
- Plus a bonus on how to get your asset into Marmoset! (For beauty shots!)
 
The first 5 people to purchase the course will get 50% off the price, SO ACT FAST!!!
 

COUPON:  https://www.udemy.com/simple-game-ready-asset-creation-in-3d-coat/?couponCode=U3D1002

 
DIRECT COURSE LINK: https://www.udemy.com/simple-game-ready-asset-creation-in-3d-coat/  <-- Currently only privately viewable, so 3D Coat community members get first dibs!

Edited by alvordr
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Some videos that "get lost and try to cover too much" actually cover VERY pertinent information to the tool or task at hand....information that if left out, would leave a new user frustrated with the tool or workflow. I remember a lot of tutorials, when learning various 3D software titles, that would race through the steps so fast and leave out important "need to know" information, that I would sometimes leave me aggravated.

 

I'll give an example of what you call "losing focus" or "Getting lost." One of the Pose Tool videos on the Youtube channel covers Multi-Resolution considerations and talks about using some hotkeys to speed that process up. Well...you would call that "Losing focus," but I consider it an integral part of USING the Pose Tool. It's highly recommended in ZBrush or Mudbox to step down a few levels in subdivision, to perform large scale edits like that, and so likewise, in 3D Coat, one really should consider working on a proxy ANYTIME they use the Pose Tool. If you leave that part of the process out, then using the Pose tool leaves one feeling like it doesn't work very well...and on that perception alone....they could just walk away unhappy with the app use something else. This would easily be the case for an experienced ZBrush or Mudbox artist....thinking "I can do a lot better than this in _______.....this is way too slow!"

 

 

Just because you don't see the value in mentioning important steps relative to using certain tools, it doesn't mean others don't. I personally hate watching tutorials where people work on "simple" items. It doesn't teach me much more than I already know. That's why I gravitate toward the very extensive, project-based tutorials, when available. But again, that is my preference. It may not be yours or the next persons.

 

Some people have extremely short attention spans while others have more patience and appreciate tutorials that are more "in depth." So, you cannot please every audience. With that in mind, there is no need to criticize other training resources, in order to elevate and sell your own. I don't know of any other training resource that does that. They leave it up to the viewer to decide on their own. Just my 2 cents.

 

Don

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I'll give another example. I may want to see an brief overview of Blender Cycles as a whole, but I may not have the patience or time to sit through a 30 minute video for that. So, I might instead try to find one that is a bit shorter. It doesn't mean the 30 minute video didn't serve it's purpose, or wasn't well done. It's just not what I'm looking for at the time. But later on, when I do have more time, and I want to dive into the subject in more depth, then that 30min video may then be just what I need.

 

Likewise, if you just want to see a quick concise demo of the Pose tool, then you know ahead of time, a 30min demo is not what you are looking for. But just because it's not what YOU are looking for doesn't mean that the make of the tutorial LOST FOCUS or WAS TRYING TO COVER TOO MUCH. Everything in that Pose tool video mentions helpful tidbits of information all along the way...a lot of tidbits a new user would likely want to know in the process of using the tool (like the difference between reduction and decimation as it's used in the Voxel room environment). Proxy mode is somewhat hidden from view, both in the layer panel and the different levels of subdivision are hidden away from view. So, unless someone points it out, a new user won't find it. All this info is not mentioned in the Manual....so, how do you suppose they would know it's a really good idea to use decimation instead of reduction when posing thin objects like wings or clothing. But you say it's "losing focus" or covering too much. Really?

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I think that depends on the knowledge of the customer.

A beginner want tutorials with that he could do some "cool" stuff, and dont want to be watch a high technical 30 minute tutorial about the usage of the grab tool.

A more professional user want to know more of some tools and need this high technical tutorial where you could learn 99-100% of that, what that grab tool could do.

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Don,

 

I hear you.  I wasn't trying to elevate my video by putting down others, so I'm sorry if that's how it came across and offended anyone.  My point in saying that the focus can get lost in covering something like a game character vs something much simpler was merely to point out that the focus was on process, not content and to justify why having only demonstrated simple content was important.

 

I actually plan on having another course designed/aimed at a character or something more challenging than a simpler game asset.  Many who have asked me to come up with a course like this have already demonstrated an ability to create a character or gun or some other asset, but weren't sure how to get that asset into a game.  Quite a few of the tutorials I went through to get to where I am with game content focused so much on content, I found myself lost in how to get my content game-ready.  Like you said, experiences differ.

 

What is interesting to me is that you picked that pose tool tutorial, stating that I would call that losing focus, but that's actually not true.  You do a great job of explaining what you're doing and you've got a good voice for it.  You also keep them pretty well focused on that particular tool or function or concept, so you're actually doing it in a way that promotes the kind of course work I was trying to convey...focused on the process.

 

I really like your videos and many of those that people have put together, here.  Most of my negative experiences with tutorials have actually been on random YouTube/Vimeo or some of the CG sites that didn't appear to have any kind of curriculum, most of which had nothing to do with 3D Coat.  In contrast, I feel that is why CG Tutors, Lynda.com, 3D Motive and a few others have done really well.  They organize the material in a way that makes sense to me.  No one has to buy my course and, certainly, if it needs work, I can try to improve on it.

Edited by alvordr
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Don,

 

I got to thinking about some of the videos I've bought in the past that fit the problem I was trying to address by keeping the asset simple.  One that comes to mind was a futuristic gun tutorial I bought that talks about making the gun and getting into a game engine.  I was excited to have had the chance to see that in action, and then realized about 90% the way through that certain key steps in the process were missing.  I felt disappointed that I spent all that time getting to that point and then being stuck.  Of course, I asked for help from the instructor, who basically pointed out that they were using a version of Maya I didn't have, so I couldn't get any further along.  There wasn't any mention of a specific version of Maya in the requirements, and I could only blame myself for buying the course without looking into that.  However, it didn't negate the fact that I and possibly others missed out on an opportunity and wasted a bit of money.  I hoped to create a course that didn't do that.  I hope this makes sense.

Edited by alvordr
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I really like what you are doing with the coursework and how it is laid out in an outlined fashion, but I find that you can highlight the benefits of your course-ware without resorting to remarks that disparage other resources. Youtube is a good, centrally-located, high-traffic, platform to get training to the masses, but it is nearly impossible to layout the videos in an outline format. In the future, we'll try to put content on the main website, in outline form.

 

BTW, if you can create a Youtube channel that lists some of the preview videos for your course-ware, we can place it on the official 3DC channel as a "Featured Channel." Just put links to the appropriate course-ware page in the description of your videos.

 

It's good to give the community more training resource options, so we can do what we can to help point them in your direction.

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Thank  you for the compliment. It means a lot coming from you.  You've been very helpful to the community here.

 

I've seen a few instances where people have uploaded YouTube videos as Part 1 and Part 2, etc., that keep things pretty orderly.  However, I agree, it doesn't appear to be all that easy.  It's also not as curriculum-based as I personally would prefer.  So one task with my course is to sell the benefits of taking a course on the particular delivery platform of choice.

 

I pulled back from the course while doing it, to look at it with fresh eyes.  My first reaction was, "What makes this different from other ways I can get similar material?  Why am I (the student) taking a course on building such a simple asset, which I can already do?"  The answers were that this was intended to be more curriculum-based and that the focus was on the process, not the asset. I see no problem with providing those answers up front.  I see that I need to work on the execution/delivery of those answers, based on your feedback.  I will likely be redoing my promo video to improve it in a direction that communicates what I'm trying to say more effectively.

 

Thanks for the tip about the YouTube channel.

Edited by alvordr
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Don,

 

Thank you for your feedback.  I've recreated the promo, and I'm uploading it now.  I really appreciate your candor.

 

Kind Regards,

Rob

Cool. Let me know when you have your Youtube Channel set up, and we'll put a link to it on the 3DC Youtube page. It will be visible on the upper right side, so visitors can see related channels. You can effectively use your channel to direct viewers to your courseware

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Mr. Alvordr I think a full tutorial covering how to make a game ready character would be awesome.  I recently just bought your udemy course for the intro to 3d coat.  I'm not sure if you cover this in there or not but one thing that i'm looking for in a game ready tutorial is, a very detailed and explanation heavy guidance on sculpting.  See i come from a IT back ground then moved to college for math and physics degree.  I'm just a beginning artist and would love explanation as to why your using this brush to make this detail and stuff like that.  Maybe even suggesting alternatives but explaining why one works for you over the other.  Details like that help me figure out what might work best for how i know i work.

 

Hope i've explained this well.

-Jon

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Mr. Alvordr I think a full tutorial covering how to make a game ready character would be awesome.  I recently just bought your udemy course for the intro to 3d coat.  I'm not sure if you cover this in there or not but one thing that i'm looking for in a game ready tutorial is, a very detailed and explanation heavy guidance on sculpting.  See i come from a IT back ground then moved to college for math and physics degree.  I'm just a beginning artist and would love explanation as to why your using this brush to make this detail and stuff like that.  Maybe even suggesting alternatives but explaining why one works for you over the other.  Details like that help me figure out what might work best for how i know i work.

 

Hope i've explained this well.

-Jon

That's the real problem with creating tutorials. You get some viewers who share your perspective on the matter...desiring a deeper explanation as to "why." But then you have others that just want you to "hurry the f__k up and get to the f-ing point!!!" :D

So, that leaves the author of the tutorial feeling like......

 

tumblr_n84tczjfpe1smmsbuo2_250.gif

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@agentc0re

 

First, thank you for purchasing the course, and I hope you've learned a few things from it.  I have thought about stepping it up a notch on the content for the next course.  I wasn't necessarily going to jump right into a character, as that can be rather complex, and one thing I've learned over the years with 3D is that it's generally not a good idea to go head first into the more difficult stuff.  You tend to spend a lot of time trying to figure out why you're model doesn't look quite right.

 

For characters, it tends to be a better idea to spend time studying anatomy, forms, and the physics of anatomy.  Have you done any of that, yet?  I'm still not happy with much of the work I've done, as I need to work on scale and sometimes other areas.  Of course, nothing stops you from jumping right in, at all.  I will be planning a character creation course at a later time.

 

The other thing I'll say about this is that you wouldn't want your surgeon to just start using the scalpel for the first time, when you're on the table.  It's often better to learn the tools and techniques before tackling the big dogs.

 

@carlosan

 

I here ya.   It's tough when someone gets stuck on something that should be quick, but doesn't have the time to dig around for it.

 

@Don

 

I feel that's where you excel.  Your tutorials are great at digging into singular and sometimes more complex stuff, quickly.

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